Puzzling Puzzle Paintings from Valentine Mark Herman and the Hermits: Dean, Niklas, Suus, Stephanie and Katerina

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Well, Val started this strange puzzle painting exchange a few weeks ago by mailing puzzle pieces to us five mail artists. He took 5 famous paintings that had 12 puzzle pieces, a child's collection that he found in a flea market, and sent 12 pieces to each of us, mixed of course, in a green envelope!!!

I received these 12 pieces:

Dean Marks in France got this:

Suus in Mokum in the Netherlands got:

Stephanie Blake in the USA got:

Niklas Heed in Sweden got this (yep...a missing piece!):

Not to be out-witted by the master-of-games-and-other-mail-art-phenomena-Valentine-Mark-Herman,

we got organized, and each person picked a puzzle painting right away:

1. Jean Baptiste Perroneau: "A Girl with a Kitten" "La Jeune Fille au Chat" for SUUS IN MOKUM

2. William Hogarth: "The Graham Children" "Le Enfants Graham" for DEAN  MARKS

3. Titian: "The Vendramin Family" "La Famille Vendramin" for NIKLAS HEED

4. S. J. Hamblin: "Child with a Rabbit"  "Petit Fille au Lapin" for STEPHANIE BLAKE

5. John Constable: "The Flatford Mill" "Le Moulin de Flatford" for KATERINA

Of course, we had to hunt up the images of these masterpieces,

not all of us being expert art historians like Val!

EDIT: (Do you know what they look like? I mean to say...not what art historians look like,

but "Does anyone know what those above paintings look like?")) (Well, Google does!)

Then we had to figure out which pieces go to which person for which painting!

And we  accomplished the task given us by Val in Guiness-Book-of-Records time! :-0

(Top-Secret, Confidential method never to be revealed!)

Here is "The Flatford Mill" (detail) in progress as the pieces arrived in Greece:

One little flaw in the great game of "puzzle pieces for paintings": a missing piece!

It is from Niklas' puzzle painting, and he is still searching his house for its lost whereabouts :-(

There are those amongst us who consider  a Sigean-suspect...cat or man, or cat-man!

HOWEVER! Have no fear, Niklas completed his puzzle painting, thanks to "a relative of Titian who lives in Greece"

So now Niklas' has the rare puzzle with an original hand-painted piece for the detail of the children: 

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

And this is Suus in Mokum's choice...a beauty for the Cat Lover's group :-)

Jean Baptiste Perroneau: "A Girl with a Kitten"  - "La Jeune Fille au Chat" 

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Oh, gosh, Val, thanks...but PLEEEEZZZZZZEEE, don't count me in on any more puzzle projects. This was fun...but!

Let me post here Dean's puzzle painting: 

William Hogarth: "The Graham Children"  - "Le Enfants Graham" 

[Valentine Mark Herman]

The Puzzle Gang are a great taem.

Now I'm looking for more puzzles, or similiar ideas.

Any one else want to join in the fun?

THANKS Katerina for this documentary record.

You wondered what an Art Historian looked like? After looking at  all of this stuff that you have put together, I can only suggest that you take a look in a mirror. Voilà! An art historian.

Val

[Marie Wintzer]

That's pretty cool!! yoy!

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Super group of puzzled puzzlers! Thanks to you all for sending xxx Thanks for the envelopes too!

OMG! Envelope from Dean:

from Niklas:

From Stephanie:

From Suus:

[Eraser Heed]

 

 

   It was truly a pleasure this puzzling/mailing business! Puzzling the world together..

[Katerina Nikoltsou (MomKat)]

Val's grinchy-green envelope and his instructions...

"I went to a flea market /vide grenier last weekend

and paid the extortionate sum of €1 for a children's book

called 'L'art en puzzles: les animaux -- une premiere approache de l'art le jeu'.

It contained 5 jigsaw puzzles..(paintings)

Each of the 5 puzzles contained 12 Pieces. The pieces in, say, the top left hand corner of one puzzle could be substituted for the piece located in the same position in another puzzle.

What I did was jumble up the 5 puzzles and send each of you a very mixed up 12 piece jigsaw. You have 12 pieces taken from 5 different jigsaws.

Your task is to exchange the pieces amongst yourselves,

so that each of you can make up the 12 piece picture that is 'yours'.

GO GANG, GO!